1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transport vessel and more particularly, to a transport vessel that may be used as a tanker.
2. Description of the related art
Accidents involving tankers at sea occur frequently all around the world and cause substantial sea pollution. Particularly, the accident in the Malacca channel is so serious that people who live in coastal countries are apprehensive of its influence. As a result, double-bottomed hull constructions have been developed. However, due to limitations of ship building capacity, it is contemplated that it would take some dozen years or several decades to make all tankers of double-bottom hull construction. Ordinary known tankers have become huge, and the internal storage tank of a tanker has been divided into many parts and constructed to restrict the danger of spills. Nevertheless, a spill such as oil outflow caused by hull destruction in the event of a collision cannot be prevented. Furthermore, in the event that such an oil spill should ignite and cause and explosion, the possibility exists that another oil tank could spill and/or ignite. Even if a tanker is double-bottomed, this does not remove the possibility of an oil spill in the event of a serious accident.